Thank you, Dodger fans…

Well, it was hardly the finish we all had hoped for back in February at Camelback Ranch, but it was a great day and hopefully those of you at the stadium or watching on TV enjoyed it.

From Brad Ausmus’ retirement ceremony and two-hit game, to John Lindsey taking out the lineup card with Joe Torre and even getting in the box score with a pinch-hit appearance…and from Hong-Chih Kuo setting the record for the lowest single-season ERA in franchise history, to Joe Torre’s farewell speech and ceremony, it’ll actually be a day to remember for many Dodger fans who have supported this team all year.

I know that more than 15,000 people left the stadium with some sort of gift (one of which took home a Hyundai Sonata), while David Hasselhoff’s rendition of God Bless America was a huge hit (as was his cameo in Don’t Stop Believing).

On behalf of everyone at the Dodgers, we truly thank you for your support this season. You all come out, win or lose, through thick and thin and for that, you have our deepest gratitude.

Keep checking back at the blog all winter, as we’ll be updating regularly. And have a safe Fall…

30 Comments

Thank-you, again, Josh for all you do for us. I’m looking forward to see what is going to happen in the off-season. And, I’m sure, as soon as the Hot Stove talks begin, we here, on ITD, will have plenty to talk about.
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I want to also thank all of the players who tried their hardest to get us into the playoffs again. Next year, guys.
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ALWAYS DODGER BLUE THROUGH AND THROUGH.

A big “Thank You”, Josh for all your efforts.
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Yeah, the results for this season weren’t anywhere close to what we were hoping for, but, as they said in Brooklyn those many years ago, “Wait til next year.”
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I’m also looking forward to the Hot Stove discussions and expect to see some lively chat here along with some great new songs 🙂
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See ya all later! God bless!!!!

Thank you Josh and everyone else that helps you here with the blog!
It was a bad year but still I have so many good memories of the season from the Caravan days to Spring Training trips, to other road trips and of course being at our Blue Heaven on Earth. I got misty saying goodbye to friends at the stadium. The goodbyes started when I saw ushers walking in to the stadium and they continued at each stadium level.
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See you soon OLOCR! See you next year boys in Blue! In the meantime, I’ll look at the postseason, follow the Hot Stove and maybe go the Fall League.
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The winner of the MLB Bloggers league was my LA Locos Azules.
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May the Giants go out in the first round!
Emmahttp://crzblue.mlblogs.com

I didn’t get a chance to even watch the games this weekend, other than through my phone. We are well into our fall ball season for the highschool teams. Our Valley Sports Academy team spent the weekend in San Jose playing in a tournament. We didn’t do well in terms of wins at all. We lost all three, but we lost all three within one run, and they were all low scoring game. The most runs scored in one game was 3 so good pitching and defense is certainly taking center stage right now.

For those of you that read the story about one of our player’s mom’s passing away during a very tragic event. Well, the tragic event is that her husband is now being charged with murder in which he is pleading not guilty. Anyhow, I had the pleasure of spending the weekend with Chris, the player. He is one of our relief pitchers so he only comes in for an inning at a time. He has kind of an underarm, sidearm pitch going, which is very off speed and you can maybe only use him for one or two innings at the most since it won’t take long for a good team to tee off on him if they get the timing down. Anyhow, for two days now I saw him pitch his two innings like nothing in the world mattered other than being on that mound. And to think the other team had no clue what this young man has gone through in the last two weeks and what he is about to head into with a trial lurking in the weeks, months and possibly years to come. I sat through dinners with him, and other than an occasional sadness you would see, he looked and acted pretty normal. He and his brother are toughing it out, but boy, it certainly isn’t going to be easy at all.

What does this have to do with the Dodgers? Well, it is baseball and Dodgers are baseball. But in terms of the players, we don’t really know what is going through the players heads. We don’t know what they are thinking when they are up to bat, playing the field or pitching off the mound. They could have a sick wife/girlfriend, baby, relative, or friend at home, they could have a good friend that needs their help with something (with minor or major it’s not for us to judge), or they could just not feel well themelves. I know they get paid lots and lots of money to try and clear their heads and do their best, but we just never really know what they are going through in their heads. In this last two weeks, I have really paid attention to how I react to people who may be upset or angry at something that doesn’t seem that big of a deal. It may come down to the fact that they just had a pretty crappy day from the start, whether it is something minor or major. Just like everyday people, our Dodgers (the team of players) are people too, and maybe they just had a bad day, or in some cases, a bad season.

It’s a strange feeling not being part of the post season, and it’s even stranger hearing the other side of my household being part of it. I was really hoping for the three way tie today just to see how it all played out, but in the end, the Padres needed to earn that win and couldn’t do it. They lost the division back when they had the 10 game losing streak and really were never able to get out of that hole they made for themselves. The Dodgers dug their hole early in the season and were never able to recover. I am not sure of the reasons, but now that the season is done, all we can do is look forward to next season and hope the powers that be really think about what is best for the team. I know, I know…………………..but we can hope, can’t we?

As much as this team drove me nuts this season, I will certainly miss them. There were such high hopes for our core young guns, and for one reason or another, it just didnt’ happen for them. Some things were out of their control due to injury and for some, it really did seem to be all in their head at times. We can hope it all gets worked out over the off-season. We can also hope for a new owner. I still think that was a major factor in the team’s performance, not directly but certainly indirectly. I think the McCourts put their own affairs as being more important than the team on the field. If they were really thinking what was best for the team, they could have figured things out without the dog and pony show we saw this season leading up to these last three weeks we had to endure their court proceedings through the media.

I read this early from one of our writers, but if it is true the Logan White has been fired than the front office really isn’t listening to a thing we have been saying for years now. Then again, someone also mentioned why should he stick around when he will be snatched up by somebody who will value what he can do for their team. I agree!!! Logan deserves better than this!!!

Glad to see you back Mr. JhallWally!!!!!

I wouldn’t be a good Ethieraholic if I didn’t mention Andre. Like every end of the season. I will miss his swing, his smile, and watching his frustrations because those are just as much as part of him now as his swing. I love the intensity because it reminds me of my son…………….which he hates when I compare them. His final numbers weren’t really all that bad considering he was on the DL. Give him those 20 games back, without an injury, and we are looking at a much different season IMO. I am happy with his season. I think he did all he could do under the pressure he (and Matt too) was put under to produce the same way he produced in 2009.

Josh – Thanks once again for giving us this forum. I know it hasn’t been an easy season for you as well. I can’t imagine what your job entails right now, and I don’t think your off-season will be a piece of cake either. I know we don’t make it any easier, but like many have said, it’s just because we love our Dodger Blue so much. We just want what’s best for them. I know you want the same and you also want to keep your job. Check in when you can, but otherwise have a great off season.

I can’t wait for the Hotstove League to begin.

Glad the Dodgers won today!!!!
Denny’s race not so great, but it’s not bad either.
Glad the Redskins won today!!!!
Glad the Chargers won today!!!!
Glad the Rams won today!!!!

This is the worst day of my life to see those fool clinching the NL west. You should’ve seen the Giants main mlb board with all those F bombs they given to there own players, manager, coaches and owner everyday they don’t even deserve the division.

I hate to get threaded but copy my last message and blah at the Raiders losing and I thought this was the year lol. At least the 49ers lost again with a last minute FG and boy Nate Clement really mess up big time and the 49ers should’ve had won that game.

Thanks Josh for the forum. Hope you have a great “Autumn” and hope to hear from you soon. I’m sure Dodgers will be having a lot of activities this off season! Good luck and God bless you.
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Nelly thanks for sharing. That was a touching story about the Pitcher that lost his mom. I will have them in my prayers. It is true, we don’t know what is going through our players head when they are out there playing. Sometimes we forget that they are human just like us. We forget that they have problems, bills, illnesses, families, religions just like us. They have it tougher than us, they have an audience picking at their every move.
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As an Ethieraholic I will miss Andre too. And I hope he comes back next season wearing Dodger Blue! I?m still a Martinista and I do miss Russell. Hope he gets better soon and starts his rehab. I truly do hope he comes back wearing Dodger Blue as well. The catchers we have did good but Martin is still my favorite Dodger Catcher.
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I wish Torre happiness and lots of blessings. Hopefully he gets to enjoy baseball again, even if it?s from some beach watching it on TV. I?m sure the whole politics behind the game got to him. He is a great person and will be missed.
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Ausmus, happy retirement. Hope he had a great time with the Dodgers.
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To all the BOYS IN BLUE hope they have a great off season. This was a tough season for them, but a lot of them had great accomplishments. And it is funny that our Pitching gave us a lot of problems, but they had the biggest accomplishments. NEXT YEAR, NEXT YEAR WE WILL GET THEM!
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Rosie

Anybody at the game yesterday wait around to hear the Yankee manager give his going away speech? I have heard and read that when he mentioned Frank McCourt that there was a loud chorus of boos:) Just wanted to see if anyone was there to give us their thoughts on how it really happened.

I did not go but did hear it online. But it seems that the boos were mostly for Ned Coletti! Unless the boos reached the mic late. Even Torre’s Daugther reacted to the boos. But I hope she understands that they were not for her DAD but for NED & FRANK!

Thanks lbirken – you are good about putting things into perspective. Always willing to read your two cents, including your recent post about the game yesterday. I am glad you had a great time. I am finding I just love watching baseball. I am happy watching the Dodgers, and I am just as happy watching my son and his teams.

A funny side note about yesterday’s game. Yesterday we played at the home of the San Jose Giants. Well, our catcher is an actual Giants fan. He was so excited about playing on the same field and on the same dirt as Buster Posey, he grabbed a little of the dirt around him so he can sprinkle it on his catcher’s spot on the highschool field. The things we do as fans to have the connection to our favorite teams/players is what keep us young at heart for a long, long time.

636566cy, I was at the game yesterday and I can tell you the boos clearly were for Frank McCourt and nobody else. Frank was at the game but wisely did not directly participate in the ceremony honoring Joe after the game. The ceremony itself was short and sweet. After the last out, the Dodger players came out on the field and rather than the quick high fives they usually do after a win, there were a lot of hugs. I think it was an emotional day for the players. The players all stayed on the field as Joe made his way toward home plate along with a large group of photographers. There were a lot of people around home plate but I could not clearly see Frank. The announcer made some introductions of the people participating in the ceremony and it included Ned and Manion. Joe was given a painting and he made some comments, the most important in my mind when he acknowledged the fans for their passion and for treating Joe and his family so well. Joe mentioned Frank’s name in his remarks and that is when the boos happened. I can honestly say the boos were not as loud as might be expected but then again, the announced attendence was a little over 37,000 and I doubt there were that many there and certainly not that many at the time of the ceremony.

I might add it was a fun day at the ballpark. The crowd was into the game and did not seem to care about the standings. We all wanted to see a good game of baseball and more importantly, a win. Sure, there was the allure of the prizes but I can honestly say everyone had a good time whether they won a prize or not. For the record my wife and friends who joined us were shut out again on Fan Appreciation Day unless you want to count the silly flip-flops given to each fan at the entrance. We have attended many fan appreciation days over the years and exept for one year when we won a light weight jacket that no one ever used, we have not won anything. There is just something special about the last day of the season as there is about the first.

I would be remiss if I did not mention how exciting it was to watch Brad Ausmus play his last game. It seems few players retire on their own terms and not due to injury. We missed the pre game ceremony honoring Brad but it was so good to see him get a hit his first at bat but even more special to see him get a hit in his last at bat. Joe pinch ran for him and he got a lot of hugs in the dugout. We have all heard what a good person Brad is and his presence will be missed.

Nelly, thanks for your post reminding us the athletes of whom we expect so much, whether they are pros, college, high school or younger, are people just like the rest of us. When most of us mess up at work, few people know about it but when a pro or college player messes up, everyone knows about it almost as soon as it happens. Yes, as Nelly said the pros get paid a lot of money and they should be expected to perform at a high level every game or match. For the most part, they do. As Vinny has said many times, the players make it look so easy because they are so good at what they do. But Vinny also has been so good at telling us something about the player as a person. He recognizes the players are people too with the same problems we all have, and often maybe even more. Sometimes we do need the reminder.

Good afternoon ITD boys and girls!
To CY & Rosie: I was at the game yesterday and heard Torre?s speech. When he mentioned Frank?s name, yes, the crowd did BOO Frank?s name. They did a bit when he mentioned Ned?s name, but that could also be a little ?residual? boos for Frank. Don?t know. But I was one that did boo. No one likes Frank AT ALL?

Yesterday was bittersweet for me. I?m sorry that my Dodgers didn?t make the playoffs this year. My mom and I went, and no, we STILL didn?t win anything. We (like everyone else in the park) got leftover Bleacher Beach flip flops. But still didn?t win anything. Our row got close to getting a Casey Blake bobblehead, but our row wasn?t included. Emma did stop by our seats; that was nice. But I was thrilled for Ausmus; he is such a good guy! Again, I hope, I hope, I hope that Mattingly appoints him a coaching position for 2011. I read the article on the home page that the 2011 coaching staff isn?t close to being set yet?

I am o.k. with Duncan returning and I hope Donnie gives Wallach an opportunity. I like Bowa but perhaps it is time for a change. Schaefer should also not come back as he is too tied into Joe’s way of thinking. Clearly this team needs a new voice and some new energy.

Hi ITD!
nice post Nelly!.
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Yeah, I was there and heard the boos but like Ibirken said it was not as loud as expected.
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My friend Erik and I were able to tell Vin Scully one more time that we love him! He applauded us!
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CP, sorry I barely was able to stay just a little bit. I would have sat for an inning if there was an empty seat. When I was walking to your seat, I was hearing someone say “Emma” It was my friend Dee who was sitting around there.
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I did not win anything either. We got the bleacher beach mats when we came in thru the field level but other friends that came afterwards got the flip flops. When I went to the Top Deck I saw some of my friends with beach towels or the flip flop hats. A friend was able to get me a flip flop hat.
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I was feeling a little bit gloomy like the weather, but I am over it.
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Good luck D.Lowe! Beat the Jints & Lincecum.

Emma ? That?s okay that you couldn?t stay; it was getting kinda crowded at the time. I was just thrilled to see you to; I know my mom was happy to see you! You take care; we?ll be talking during the off season!

Trumom, I sure hope Bowa is out. I have nothing against Duncan, but the best of all worlds would have a new coaching staff. The article on the 2011 coaching staff already has that Schaefer won?t be back next year. I say YEAH!

I blame Ned, Frank, and our Bullpen….Frank for being a tight-wad…..Ned for getting us no help and the bullpen for blowing all those big leads early in the season. I mean, 8 runs, not enough…7 runs, hold your breath and pray. I DON’T blame Dre, Matt and James. How the hell do you think they were feeling standing out there and watch their games leads disappear every day. I know I would be saying, “What the F***” is going on with this crappy bullpen!”

ummmmmm…………….what we need is a new owner, a new GM and a new manager. We (sorta) got one of the three. That will certainly change the attitude of the Dodgers fans. The first two lines from the article on the homepage with Ned and Mattingly claiming there needs to be an attitude adjustment versus roster changes.

More about Logan White. This one and yesterdays are from Molly Knight, who has been following the McCourts and their court issues. Her and Dylan Hernandez have twitter accounts, and they update the fans regularly on what is happening with the Dodgers.

I think it It was Saturday when I saw a twitter from Dlyan at the game that said that he was really really bored but that he was too full to eat. I looked at it and was thinking that he should be glad that he is getting paid to watch games. I was at the game and I was not bored.
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i was talking to Byron on Sunday about Andre and Devon. I also told him that I was hoping Logan White does not leave us. He just smiled. He also let me know that they removed the cameras on the freeways in Arizona. He said lots of people were not paying the fees. We paid all three of the tickets we got last year.
Emmahttp://crzblue.mlblogs.com

Attitude starts from the top, why anyone would want to work for those ******** is beyond me. It is work, even if is just a game. When you know the owners do what they do why should u even care? And when your GM makes stupid move after stupid move why even care(i mean if you are a player not loyal fans like we are)

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